changelog-generator

Transform technical git commits into polished, user-friendly changelogs.

When to Use

• Preparing release notes for a new version
• Creating weekly/monthly product updates
• Writing changelog entries for app stores
• Generating internal release documentation
• Maintaining a public changelog page

How It Works

1. Scan Git History: Analyze commits from time period or between versions
2. Categorize Changes: Group into features, fixes, improvements
3. Translate: Convert developer commits into user-friendly language
4. Format: Create clean, structured changelog entries
5. Filter Noise: Exclude internal commits (refactoring, tests, etc.)

Usage

Basic Usage

Create a changelog from commits since last release

Generate changelog for commits from the past week

Create release notes for version 2.5.0

With Date Range

Create changelog for commits between March 1 and March 15

With Tag Range

Generate changelog for commits since v2.4.0

Git Commands

Get Commits Since Tag

git log v1.0.0..HEAD --oneline
git log v1.0.0..HEAD --pretty=format:"%h %s" --no-merges

Get Commits by Date

git log --since="1 week ago" --oneline
git log --since="2026-03-01" --until="2026-03-15" --oneline

Get Commits with Details

git log --since="1 week ago" --pretty=format:"- %s (%h)" --no-merges

Group by Author

git shortlog -sn --since="1 month ago"

Output Format

Standard Changelog

# Changelog

## [2.5.0] - 2026-03-15

### Added
- **Team Workspaces**: Create separate workspaces for different projects
- **Keyboard Shortcuts**: Press ? to see all available shortcuts

### Changed
- **Faster Sync**: Files now sync 2x faster across devices
- **Better Search**: Search now includes file contents

### Fixed
- Fixed issue where large images wouldn't upload
- Resolved timezone confusion in scheduled posts

### Security
- Updated dependencies to patch vulnerability CVE-2026-XXXX

User-Friendly Format

# Updates - Week of March 15, 2026

## ✨ New Features
- **Team Workspaces**: Create separate workspaces for different
  projects. Invite team members and keep everything organized.

## 🔧 Improvements
- **Faster Sync**: Files now sync 2x faster across devices
- **Better Search**: Search now includes file contents, not just titles

## 🐛 Fixes
- Fixed issue where large images wouldn't upload
- Resolved timezone confusion in scheduled posts

Commit Categories

Include in Changelog

feat:     → ✨ New Features / Added
fix:      → 🐛 Bug Fixes / Fixed
perf:     → ⚡ Performance / Changed
security: → 🔒 Security
docs:     → 📚 Documentation (if user-facing)

Exclude from Changelog

chore:    Internal maintenance
refactor: Code restructuring
test:     Test changes
ci:       CI/CD changes
style:    Code formatting
build:    Build system

Automated Generation

Using git-cliff

# Install
cargo install git-cliff

# Generate changelog
git cliff --output CHANGELOG.md
git cliff --latest --strip header  # Only latest version
git cliff -t v1.0.0..v2.0.0        # Between tags

cliff.toml

[changelog]
header = "# Changelog\n\n"
body = """
{% for group, commits in commits | group_by(attribute="group") %}
### {{ group | upper_first }}
{% for commit in commits %}
- {{ commit.message | upper_first }} ({{ commit.id | truncate(length=7, end="") }})\
{% endfor %}
{% endfor %}
"""
trim = true

[git]
conventional_commits = true
filter_unconventional = true
commit_parsers = [
  { message = "^feat", group = "Features" },
  { message = "^fix", group = "Bug Fixes" },
  { message = "^perf", group = "Performance" },
  { message = "^doc", group = "Documentation" },
  { message = "^refactor", skip = true },
  { message = "^chore", skip = true },
  { message = "^test", skip = true },
]

Using GitHub CLI

# Generate release notes from PRs
gh release create v1.0.0 --generate-notes

# View generated notes
gh release view v1.0.0

Best Practices

1. Write for users, not developers

   • Bad: "Refactor auth module to use new SDK"
   • Good: "Login is now faster and more reliable"

2. Lead with benefits

   • Bad: "Added caching layer"
   • Good: "Pages load 50% faster"

3. Be specific about fixes

   • Bad: "Fixed bug"
   • Good: "Fixed issue where uploads failed on slow connections"

4. Group related changes

   • Combine similar commits into single entries

5. Include context when helpful

   • Link to docs for new features
   • Note breaking changes prominently

Templates

App Store Update

What's New in v2.5:

• Team Workspaces - Collaborate with your team in shared spaces
• Keyboard Shortcuts - Navigate faster with hotkeys (press ? for help)
• Performance - 2x faster sync and improved search

Bug Fixes:
• Fixed image upload issues
• Corrected timezone display

Email Newsletter

## What's New This Week

Hey there! Here's what we shipped:

**🎉 Team Workspaces**
You asked, we delivered! Create separate workspaces for different projects and invite team members.

**⚡ Speed Improvements**
Files now sync 2x faster. Search is smarter too - it now looks inside your files.

**🐛 Bug Squashing**
Fixed that annoying image upload issue and sorted out timezone confusion.

Questions? Reply to this email!

Attribution

Inspired by ComposioHQ/awesome-claude-skills